Who We Serve

WHO WE SERVE

Learn more about the people findinghope in a life through Project 658.

We are a Christ-centered, holistic ministry providing services for at-risk families in Charlotte, moving them toward sustainability; with a key focus on the international and refugee communities.What is an At Risk Family? There are many ways a family can be considered “At Risk”, here some common indicators:

Substance abuse, child abuse and neglect issues, or domestic violence in the home

Child development issues (low score on the developmental screen, health history, or general observation)

Extreme or questionable health, mental health, or nutrition issues

Children with documented disabilities

Family’s inability to deal with stress in a way that is healthy and productive

Family literacy issues

For more information and data about the community we served visit forcharlotte.org.

What is an immigrant? An immigrant is a person who migrates from a foreign country, usually seeking permanent residency. There over 150,000 people in Charlotte who are foreign born and not US Citizens.

Who is a refugee?

A refugee, as defined by Section 101(a)42 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) based on the United Nations 1951 Convention and 1967 Protocols relating to the Status of Refugees, is “a person who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution due to race, membership in a particular social group, political opinion, religion, or national origin.”

What does that mean in simple terms? A refugee is a person who has been forced to leave his or her home country.

What is the Refugee Resettlement Process?

Along with the definition of a refugee, it’s helpful to define a few more terms when explaining the refugee resettlement process.

Someone who has left her or his home to look for better work and a higher standard of living in another place.

In 1951, The UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees) was established to help approximately one million people who were uprooted during WWII. Refugee protection and assistance organizations generally promote three “durable solutions” to the fate of refugees:

Voluntary repatriation: refugees are able to return to their home country because their lives and liberty are no longer threatened.

Local integration: host governments allow refugees to integrate into the country of first asylum.

Resettlement in a third country: repatriation is unsafe and the first-asylum country refuses local integration.

A refugee is brought to their designated country having been awarded legal refugee status by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). The UNHCR office in the country of asylum (usually a neighboring country) decides and grants eligibility for refugee status based upon impending threat in the home country. A refugee awarded legal status has proved that they cannot return home for fear of their life or persecution. Once approved for resettlement, the UNHCR refers the refugee to the government of one of nine countries who participate in refugee resettlement globally.